Are you planning to travel abroad? A visa is one of the must-have documents. While some countries provide you the visa-on-arrival benefit, others will require you to apply for the visa early before your visit.
When travelling internationally, your travel insurance company can help you, especially securing the trip. It will protect you against any unwanted financial emergencies. It will protect against medical emergencies, flight delays and more.
A visa-on-arrival facility is the type of visa that will be issued once you arrive in the country. The migration authorities will provide all the information on what documents you must submit for the visa on arrival. You will get visa-on-arrival facilities for multiple countries, such as:
Sri Lanka
Myanmar
Fiji
Seychelles
Qatar, etc.
For ordinary passport holders, 26 countries provide a VOA (visa-on-arrival) facility, and 11 countries offer a VOA (visa-on-arrival) + e-Visa facility.
There are 16 countries, such as Nepal, Hong Kong, Mauritius, Maldives, etc., which are visa-free for Indian passport holders and 25 countries, such as Singapore, Malaysia, Turkey, etc., which have given the e-Visa facilities. However, the list keeps changing and evolving from time to time. So, if you plan your visit, checking the visa requirements before planning is best.
Furthermore, the application and the necessary documents must be submitted at the airport. However, it is essential to note that a visa on arrival will only be valid for a specific period along with the predetermined fee.
Applying for a visa-on-arrival facility can offer a wide range of benefits, some of which include the following:
You do not have to undergo the rigorous visa application process.
You can have flexible travel plans, meaning you don't necessarily have to travel on a specific date.
Paperwork during the application process is very minimal.
If you do your research, you'll find that some of the countries are visa-free. This means you won't have to produce any visa while visiting these countries. However, you must apply for specific permits, even if a pre-approved visa may not be required.
While you may be visiting visa-on-arrival countries with your family, it is important to get family travel insurance. There are about 45 countries that have made it mandatory for visitors to have travel insurance, such as the Schengen countries. Such an initiative has been taken to ensure that the visitors aren't falling victim to any financial crisis like property damage, physical injury, passport or luggage issues, etc., especially after COVID-19. Once you avail of a travel insurance plan, getting a visa approval also becomes easier, as insurance protects the traveller and becomes easy for the host country.
Cost of living and treatment in a foreign land can be very expensive. Therefore, you may prefer to secure your entire trip with the insurance. However, it is important to note that having insurance may not be mandatory for all countries. However, having it won't do any harm.
Your travel insurance that you apply for will be your source of financial help in a foreign land.
Any undue expenses may be protected, especially in cases of personal liability, financial emergencies, or other situations such as loss of baggage or even trip cancellation, missed flights, baggage loss, etc.
You must buy insurance while travelling, especially to foreign lands. The insurance can be of great help for your visa application. However, when you're visiting visa-on-arrival or even visa-free destinations, you may think that insurance isn't required; it is.
Some countries have very high charges, especially for medical treatment. Therefore, if you face any undue challenge at these locations, it can cause severe expenses, and you'll be left stranded on foreign lands. This can be extremely difficult when you're travelling with your family.
Some of the major reasons why you must buy a family travel insurance policy include the following,
Loss of Passport: While this is very unlikely to happen, it can accidentally happen and that would be one of the worst scenarios you can find yourself in. In case you have lost your passport, having insurance will ensure that the policy providers arrange such emergency cash and immediate passport replacement.
Flight Concerns: Considering the situation today, flight delays have become very common. Every other day, you may hear some airline or the other cancelling or delaying the flights. However, when such a scenario happens, the insurance company can help cover the cancellation and flight delays.
Medical Assistance: If you need immediate medical help in a foreign land, your insurance will cover it. Since medical treatment can be expensive in foreign lands, your policy provider can offer complete coverage. Under extremely grave circumstances, they can also assist you with emergency evacuation plans.
Cancellation Cost: What if you couldn't make it to your trip destinations due to any unforeseen/unavoidable circumstances? Does that mean your entire money goes to waste? No, it doesn't. Instead, you can get coverage for the entire cancellation cost with your insurance. The insurance will offer coverage for flight and accommodation cancellation.
Baggage Loss: Due to airline mishaps or airport confusion, baggage loss is a very common scenario. The insurance company can, therefore help you get compensation for the predefined amount for the baggage loss. However, the policy documents will mention the limit for which baggage loss compensation will be provided. Therefore, you may verify the details and conditions before filing for the claim.
While travelling abroad, you'll have to choose insurance that fits all your needs. The coverage that it offers will fit all your requirements. Here are some of the major things to look into while choosing travel insurance for travelling abroad:
Coverage Type:
When applying for family travel insurance, it is best to choose comprehensive coverage travel insurance. The comprehensive one will cover medical expenses, trip cancellation, emergency evacuation and baggage loss.
There are some
Trip Duration: You will have to understand how long your trip will last. This will have an impact on the coverage. When you're going on a longer vacation, it is advisable to go for a longer package, especially the comprehensive one.
Medical Coverage: Not every trip insurance provides medical coverage. However, some of them do. Even if the medical coverage is provided, you will have to look into medicines, doctor visits and hospital stays. Moreover, you also need to check if pre-existing conditions will be covered.
Premium: How much will you pay for the medical insurance? You need to consider the costs, especially for the one that fits your budget. It is often advisable to go for the lowest premium especially when you're going for comprehensive coverage.
Claim Process: Every insurer has its own claim process. Knowing about the same in advance is important so you know the actual process, what to do, whom to connect with, etc., if and when the need arises. You would also be aware of the entire claim protocol, timelines, documents needed for the same, etc., to claim without having to look for the same in an emergency.
Destination Risks: Some destination risks might be involved if you're travelling to hazardous countries. Your provider may consider various factors, such as destination risks, especially regarding health hazards, political conditions and natural disasters. A lot of insurance providers offer comprehensive coverage for these risks as well.
Policy Exclusions: When choosing insurance, you should always look into the policy exclusions. There are policy exclusions regarding pre-existing medical health conditions or even the destinations that may be there. Being aware of the same ahead of time is essential.
You need travel insurance that will cater to all your needs. It is advisable to check into the requirement of travel insurance for the visa on arrival. Even if that isn't mandatory in the destination, it is advisable that you get trip insurance. This will act as an additional safety layer, thereby helping you in the long run with all your travel requirements.
Disclaimer: The above information is for illustrative purposes only. For more details, please refer to the policy wordings and prospectus before concluding the sales.
Disclaimer: This article is published in association with HDFC ERGO and not created by TNM Editorial.